Georgia’s kids continue to get the short end of the stick — or should I say “stripper pole” — when it comes to education. Charter schools in Georgia have grown in popularity in recent years because of conservatives’ push to privatize everything at the expense of the state’s most vulnerable students. Now, the conservative “solution” to our education… [Read More]

Georgia taxpayers could be left paying the bill for construction on two new Plant Vogtle nuclear reactors. Taxpayers have already been paying for the reactors due to Georgia’s Nuclear Energy Financing Act, which allows Georgia Power to charge customers for the construction of anything nuclear. However, Georgia Power, which owns Plant Vogtle, has received a lot… [Read More]

Clarkston is poised to become the first Georgia city to decriminalize marijuana. Georgia has received a lot of praise, including from President Barack Obama, for its criminal justice reform, yet Gov. Nathan Deal continues to resist changes to marijuana laws. “We should not have any municipality or jurisdiction of state government saying that they’re willing to… [Read More]

With little fanfare, a new anti-transparency measure just became law. Last week, Gov. Nathan Deal signed a new anti-transparency measure into law. SB 323 exempts all economic development projects — from any state agency — from public disclosure, until after a contract has been signed. The House and Senate approved the measure late in the… [Read More]

In this age of instantly and widely available information, voters should have greater access to knowledge about who is paying for what in politics. Unfortunately, Georgia politics and government are moving in exactly the opposite direction. The latest example of this trend toward less transparency in Georgia politics is the refusal of Gov. Deal’s supporters… [Read More]

Last week, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution opined that “Nathan Deal’s ‘religious liberty’ veto could define his legacy.” There are no two ways about it: Gov. Deal is on the right side of this important issue. Even Better Georgia — arguably, Deal’s toughest critic — applauded the governor’s resolve in standing up to right-wing extremists who want… [Read More]

On the morning of March 28, 2016, Gov. Nathan Deal cemented his legacy as a Georgia governor who chose inclusion over discrimination. Gov. Deal has indicated that he will veto this year’s religious “freedom” bill, HB 757, which would have allowed nonprofits to discriminate against members of the gay community, among others. We applaud Gov…. [Read More]

Conservative talking head Ben Stein recently wondered if President Obama’s “real strong hatred of America” is “because he’s part black.” It was my daily reminder of something unsettling but painfully clear: The Right doesn’t want to talk policy. Conservative rhetoric has become so vile, so unproductive, so nauseatingly predictable that it’s been rendered undebatable. A… [Read More]

“You Don’t Know Me…” That’s how school takeover architect and Gov. Deal’s Deputy Chief-of-Staff Erin Hames started her phone conversation with Atlanta Public Schools’ new superintendent Dr. Meria Carstarphen, shortly after Carstarphen arrived from Austin. Hames continued, “You have no reason to believe me. But I am telling you, you are about to lose upwards of… [Read More]

When Gov. Deal introduced his “opportunity school district” plan, every Georgian familiar with his record of shameless corruption and cronyism asked the same question: “Opportunity for whom?” One has to look no further than Erin Hames, one of Deal’s former aides, to begin to understand how the governor’s school takeover plan will funnel taxpayer money… [Read More]